


The Weakest Link

by dumblydor



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Drama, Gen, Light Angst, Regulus grows a backbone, mildly AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-22
Updated: 2016-09-22
Packaged: 2018-08-16 16:11:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8108893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumblydor/pseuds/dumblydor
Summary: Regulus cares very little for the Marauders, especially Peter Pettigrew. But Sirius will always be his brother. Their mother could never burn that away.





	

Regulus recognized the fear in Pettigrew’s eyes. He saw it in the mirror, in himself, every day. It was the sort of fear that hung low in your gut, heavy as lead and cold; its depth rooted into the meat of your toes.  And Regulus knew what fear made men do; men who were not like Sirius. Men like Peter. _Men like Regulus_. Men who were fundamentally weak at the core, spines long-since twisted with cowardice.

 

“I’m not my brother.”

 

Like a rat, Peter was cornered. He shriveled against the wall, eyes pleading. “I-I know…”

 

“No you don’t,” Regulus hissed.

 

The Marauders were nowhere in sight, shuffled into the mix of students. But Hogsmeade was a small village and Regulus had made sure to trap Peter on the outskirts, hidden behind layers of trees and undergrowth. Term was almost at an end, and soon Peter and his cronies would be graduated and forever absent from Hogwarts grounds. If they were to have a discussion, it was now or never.

 

Regulus had heard rumors. Ink, black as his name, scorched the skin of his left arm. He had heard the rumors straight from the lips of the Dark Lord; they were to slowly break down the enemy from the inside. And Peter was the weakest link.

 

While pudgier than the rest of his lot, there was strength in his bones. More than once, Remus had slumped across those broad shoulders to be carried back to the sanctuary of Gryffindor Tower after a full moon. But beneath the pressure of a greater force, Peter’s core snapped like a twig caught in a hurricane.  

 

“They’ll be looking for me…”

 

“And they’ll bloody find you in pieces if you don’t shut up.”

 

Peter swallowed, but held his chin up. Regulus felt pity swell in his chest. The gesture was akin to Sirius; all defiance, but in Peter the act seemed feeble, betrayed by a gentle quiver.  

 

Breathing deep, Regulus continued. “They’re watching you.”

 

Confused, Peter’s gaze slid left than right. “Who?”

 

“ _You know who._ Since the start of spring term.”

 

“What?!” Peter squeaked. "What in Merlin’s name do they want with me?”

 

 _Your resources. Your friends. Your essence. Everything but you_. It was what the Dark Lord had desired in Regulus, he cared not for a sixteen year old child. He wanted the boy’s money and influence. Led by his parents, led by his cousins, Regulus had followed like a lamb to the slaughter.

 

“Does it matter when they’re already on your tail?” Regulus had to be careful and choose his words wisely. To be openly honest, laid bare to a rat, was sure to be threaded back into the midst of the Death Eaters. There was a reason Peter was the weakest link. And he could not be trusted to keep silent without threat. Regulus had to inflate his own ego, become larger than life, like the shadow of the Dark Lord incarnate. In this exchange, he had to become the greater force.

 

“Is it my parents?”

 

“No.” Regulus snarled. His patience was lost. Though the question had been logical enough.

 

“I don’t understand. Are you – Are you trying to warn me?” Eyes widening, Peter held the Slytherin’s gaze. Regulus could see his own pinched expression in the black of Peter’s pupils.

 

“I’m branded; one of His. You think I’d risk my skin warning a flea like you?” Pettigrew was a flea that drank all too deeply from his favored dog. Regulus wondered, perhaps, if the other Marauders ever tired of him. He wondered if Sirius had ever shed off Peter like he had his younger brother.

 

Silence filtered between the boys. Regulus mentally cursed himself. Had the last blow cut too deep? Had Peter been frightened off? But when the Gryffindor spoke again, his voice was steady, even if higher-pitched. “Is it Sirius?”

 

Regulus blinked. The mere mention of his sibling sent his heart racing. “ _No_."

 

“Are you sure? Are they really after me, or him?” Peter said softly.

 

“If they were after him do you think I’d waste my time with you?”

 

“I’m his friend, if you didn’t care you wouldn’t be here.”

 

Regulus bit back a growl. “You’re nothing to him!”

 

What worth did Sirius see in Pettigrew that he had failed to recognize in his own brother? And while the thought made his stomach clench, Peter and Regulus were truly one and the same. Cowards, bent all too easily by fear. But what made Peter better? What made him more of a brother?

 

Peter shrank, looking down at the grass. “ _Liar_.”

 

Teeth clenched, Regulus grasped the collar of Peter’s uniform. Knuckles, bone white, matched the skin of Peter’s face – now completely drained of color. Regulus was failing in his task. His true intentions coming to light. And his anxiety swiftly blossomed into anger.

 

“They’re watching you, Pettigrew. If you were smart you’d watch your step and keep your friends close.” Regulus paused, wetting his lips. “ _This_ is a threat. _I’m_ a threat. And you best make something useful out of that fear. I know what it looks like, I can see it in your eyes. You reek of it. And the rest of your Marauders can see it too. I bet they’re having a laugh about it right now.”

 

Stubby fingers prodded at Regulus’s grip as Peter tried in vain to twist free. “Sod off!”

 

“I’ll be watching.” Regulus was laughing, the sound dry as sand scratched at his throat. He laughed even through the pain of Peter tearing his arm away, leaving a collection of bruises that would bloom by morning. “Every move you make, I’ll see it. Even now Pettigrew, you’re sweating.”

 

Peter, now several steps away, did not run. He shook, adrenaline pulsing through the veins bulging across his temple. His mouth twisted, twitching at the corners. He was scared, but held his ground. Regulus was _almost_ impressed.

 

“Go ahead and look! Whatever it is you want, I won’t give it to you.”

 

Sirius Black could not suffer the wound of another brother lost. It was a gap too difficult to close and in spite of time it never fully healed. Regulus saw himself in Peter. Every morning when he looked in the mirror there Peter stood; wide-eyed and terrified – decked in green instead of red. They were ugly. They were pathetic. But Peter still had a choice. And Regulus would damn well make sure that Peter made the right one.

 

Regulus smiled. “Good." 

**Author's Note:**

> Poor Peter. I don't care much for him, he gives me the creeps, but he's a very underrated character. I've never written him before and am trying to test him out.


End file.
